The story: Loki comes to Earth, intent on using the power he’s been given by a mysterious being named Thanos to conquer humanity. Nick Fury pulls together Iron Man, the Hulk, Black Widow, Thor, and Captain America in order to fight the Asgardian. Loki uses the power of his scepter to control Erik Selvig and S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Clint Barton, a.k.a. Hawkeye, using his capture as a Trojan horse to splinter the Avengers and steal the Tesseract, opening a portal above New York City for an invading alien army. The Avengers beat back the Chitauri hordes, close the portal, and capture Loki, returning him and the Tesseract to Asgard.

Noteworthy events: Phil Coulson is killed by Loki during his escape from the Helicarrier, a massive S.H.I.E.L.D. airship. The film ends with the Avengers scattering to different locations—or in the case of Thor, off-world.